NEW YORK, Sep 4, 2009 / FW/ — “Shadowman” and “Crime Scene” sound like titles of television shows, but in the art world context, they are the visually arresting public art series by notable artist-painter Richard Hambleton.

Richard Hambleton – New York: An Art Exhibit
Richard Hambleton – New York: An Art Exhibit

In an exhibition entitled “Richard Hambleton – New York”, the works of the elusive New York artist spanning from the 1980s to the present day will be on display at the gallery at 560 Washington Street (door 37E) from September 16th to October 2nd with all displayed works for sale.

Presented by Vladimir Restoin Roitfeld and Andy Valmorbida in collaboration with Giorgio Armani, “Richard Hambleton – New York” begins in the 1980s, the time when Richard Hambleton together with his contemporaries Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring became major artists of the era.

Famous for his “Shadowman” paintings of the early 1980s, Richard Hambleton created a life-sized silhouetted image of a mysterious person. These “shadow paintings” were splashed and brushed with black paint on buildings and other structures across New York City, with the locations believed to be calculate for maximum impact upon unsuspecting pedestrians.

Though the “Shadowman” and “Crime Scenes” will forever be linked to Richard Hambleton as his contributions to the world of art, his new series, “Beautiful Paintings” created with gold or silver leaf on metal, mirrors and canvas is proving to be as profound as his early works.

Like “Shadowman” and “Crime Scenes,” “Beautiful Paintings” are meant to elicit reaction from its audience. Hambleton is a conceptual artist and develops projects that are really only completed once people react to them.

As the last surviving member of the East Village Art Movement, he saw what fame and drug use did to his close friends so the last 20 years Hambleton has led a relatively reclusive life on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.

Despite a low public profile, Hambleton has continued to create and his works can be found in the permanent collections of the MoMA, Brooklyn Museum and Houston Museum of Fine Art.

The Richard Hambleton Exhibition is open to the public:
560 Washington Street (door 37E)
(between Houston and Spring Streets)
New York, NY

September 16th through October 2nd
Tuesday—Friday from 10am to 4pm

One Response

  1. mariah Fee

    September 24, 2009